EARNING her place in the nation’s heart for playing the villainous yet ever-so stylish Servalan in hit sci-fi series Blake’s 7, Jacqueline Pearce was equally glamorous off set as she was on.

Even when she was between jobs, the gamine actress would cash her dole money and head to London’s West End to drink Champagne. And part of what made her such a successful super villain on the show was the fact that she did not fi t the stereotypical idea of how a “sci-fi baddie” should appear.

Pearce was only meant to appear in one episode in a supporting role but was quickly called back after her seductive looks enthralled viewers. Her Servalan soon gained cult status as the show’s main antagonist and went on to star in all four series, retaining the role until 1981.

Born in Woking, Surrey, Pearce was the daughter of factory worker Reginald and his wife Stella. When she was 16 months old her mother walked out on the family, leaving her spending her life between her father and a foster family. She was educated at the Marist Convent in West Byfleet.

Despite not enjoying her school days Pearce’s dreams of becoming an actress were realised when her teacher took her to the theatre and started elocution lessons for her.

She enrolled in secretarial college but dropped out after she won a place at Rada in London, where she studied alongside the late Sir John Hurt and Sir Anthony Hopkins. There she met her first husband Drewe Henley who directed a short film which she starred in.

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The pair quickly fell in love and were married nine months later in 1963. After leaving Rada, Pearce became immersed in the world of television, landing her first part in a 1964 ITV Play Of The Week.

Her striking looks were attractive to casting directors and she quickly rose to prominence in horror films such as The Plague Of The Zombies and The Reptile, both in 1966.

After four years of marriage Pearce and Henley divorced and she moved to Hollywood, studying at the Lee Strasberg Actors Studio in Los Angeles, while simultaneously doing a job as a receptionist.

Returning to the UK in 1978 she won her most memorable role to date, as the Supreme Commander Servalan in Blake’s 7. The complexity of her character, together with her eye-catching sci-fi costumes, captivated viewers and years later Pearce would recall how she had received love letters from fans revealing she had been their first teenage crush.

ENTHRALLING: Pearce’s striking looks made her a hit with fans (Image: FREE )

Arguably at her best portraying villains, in 1984 Pearce appeared in Doctor Who, playing the bloodthirsty alien Chessene in The Two Doctors, opposite Colin Baker’s Time Lord. Pearce returned to the world of Doctor Who decades later via the Big Finish audio series alongside her lifelong friend John Hurt. Other TV credits include Danger Man, The Avengers and Moondial.

She also appeared in a number of theatrical productions in London’s West End including Simon Gray’s Otherwise Engaged, JB Priestley’s Dangerous Corner and an Edinburgh Fringe run of her one woman show A Star Is Torn.

Taking a break from acting, Pearce decided to move to South Africa where she spent several years caring for orphaned monkeys.

In 2012 she released her memoir From Byfleet To The Bush, which documented her mental health struggles. And she delighted fans last year by reprising the role of Servalan for CD releases of Blake’s 7. Pearce was diagnosed with lung cancer in August and died at home in Lancashire.